Hourglass Vanish Foundation + Brush: Does it live up to the Hype?

I was very excited to be sent this product for review by Influenster and Hourglass Cosmetics. I’m not sure about you guys, but for me at least the search for the perfect foundation seems endless and there is a ton of hype surrounding this product. I am also a major fan of the famous Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder (in the shade Diffused Light), so I was really looking forward to trying another face product from this brand. Here is what Hourglass says about the Vanish Seamless Foundation Stick:

A revolutionary foundation stick with the coverage of a concealer, the fluidity of a liquid, and the weightlessness of a powder for undetectable full coverage.

Formula adjusts to body temperature to blend into the skin for the smoothest, most seamless finish

12 hour long wearing waterproof formula

Those are some pretty bold claims! They also included the Hourglass Vanish Foundation Brush, which they recommended for application of the product.

So first of all, the foundation is offered in 26 shades. I got the foundation in the shade “Porcelain,” a fair neutral-toned shade. It was actually one of the best matches, color-wise, that I have ever found so I was quite pleased right off of the bat. Here are some swatches of the Hourglass foundation compared to some other foundation shades that work well for me:

Next, lets talk application. So I tried the foundation with the brush that was included (retails $46.00), a Real Techniques Expert Face Brush (retails $8.99), and my Real Techniques sponge. Now don’t get me wrong, the Hourglass brush is really nice. It is dense and soft, and “PETA-approved” according to their website. The brush head is also angled in a way that fits nicely for blending under eye areas and around the nose area. However, this foundation blended out very easily and evenly with both brushes and I couldn’t tell the difference in finish. I think in the case of the brush, it may be more of a luxury versus a performance sorta deal. I found that the RT sponge did sheer out the foundation (as it often does), and I actually did not get as seamless of a blend as I was able to with the brushes.

No makeup. No coffee. 4:15am.

Applying 2-3 dots to each section of the face.

Foundation only.

Foundation only, zoomed in to show coverage on undereyes, acne scars, and redness. Ignore the rogue eyelash!

So, the foundation blended out very quickly without sticking to any weird patches on my skin and set down to a “natural” finish; not quite matte but definitely not dewy. I really enjoy the finish of this foundation. I applied 2-3 triangles of foundation to each area of my face and that got me a solid medium coverage, which is where I like to be for an everyday basis. It was definitely enough to cover my redness. I went in with a few more dots under my eyes and on some patches of acne scarring on my right cheek, and I think it did a good job as a concealer as well.

The foundation can definitely be built up to very full coverage and I did try on a few days ago. I found that it transferred much more easily (which makes sense, but a no go for white coats). I also found that with more of it on, the wear time was not nearly as good and I found the product showing signs of breakdown and creasing at around the 5 hour point. I do have combination skin, so this could very well have been my skin, but I haven’t run into that nearly as much when I use less product.

Here is how the foundation wore throughout my day!

5:50 AM

2:28 PM

5:09 PM

From when I arrived at the hospital before 6:00AM until I had time to snap my second photo, around 2:30PM, I think the foundation held up beautifully. I really scrutinized it under the fluorescent light of the bathroom mirror and couldn’t see any pore emphasis, oily product breakdown, or weird textural issues. You can tell that I have lost a little bit of coverage, but not too badly as my acne scarring is still covered (as are most of my freckles). The third photo was taken about 11 hours later and up close it just didn’t look that great. It certainly wasn’t the worst I have ever seen, but the foundation definitely has some problems with serious long term wear. At that point, a significant amount of the product had worn off, it had sunk into my pores around my nose, and had also started to actually crust around a dry patch in between my eyebrows. The dry patch could definitely be a skincare issue, but it was certainly emphasized by this product’s breakdown process.

So here are my final thoughts:

This foundation has an absolutely beautiful natural finish and one of the best shade ranges I have seen recently. This would be perfect for photography since it doesn’t have SPF and will not create a “flashback” effect. It absolutely did live up to the claim of feeling light–I did not feel like I had anything on my face all day. It has great, medium-full buildable coverage and would be perfect for special occasions, going out, or really anything but 12-hour shifts. Unfortunately, it is not a 12-hour, longwearing formula. Perhaps it is waterproof, but it is definitely not transferproof.

Some other things worth noting– this foundation is pretty pricey for the amount of product you get. It is $46 for 0.25oz of product. Most liquid foundations come with 1oz of product, though you would use much less per application of this product as it is much more pigmented. I think if you used this every day for full coverage you might run out pretty quickly. Also, mine arrived a little “smushed” at the tip from the product being wound up in the tube during shipping. I would recommend ordering from a retailer that offers very easy returns, like Sephora or Nordstrom in case this happens to you, or picking up in store. The brush is available for $46 here.

I definitely look forward to wearing this foundation more, especially for date nights and weekends– maybe just not to the hospital.

-Haley

Have you all tried the Hourglass Vanish Foundation?

Would you all be interested in hearing about some of my favorite long wearing foundations? What works for you?

Hi Abby! Thanks for checking out the blog 🙂 I didn’t use any setting spray or powder other than I light dusting under my eyes to prevent mascara transfer/creasing. I usually apply a little powder on my T-zone with foundations, but since this “set” pretty nicely on its own I wanted to see how it held up throughout the day without it. Setting spray and powder would definitely extend longevity, but may give it more of a totally matte finish.